Pepper & China Roses
by Rude2
Summary: Against his own wishes, Treize survives the war. He has to face this brave new world of peace while Wufei and Zechs battle their own stubborn feelings. 13x6x5 Yaoi
1. Default Chapter

****

Pepper & China Roses

By Rude.

Warnings:

AU, Possible OOC, yaoi, other stuff, maybe some angst.

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Chapter 1

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Swinging long legs to the cold floor, the former Oz general killed what little grogginess still buzzing his head.

It was the middle of April and everything outside was alive and blooming. If ever he could enjoy it fully, now was the time.

After all the heartache and two hundred years of blood, now was the time to harvest what peace brought to every other human on earth and the colonies.

The former general of Oz special forces felt he deserved a go at this new found peace, one he new for sure would last longer than anyone could dream.

How he new this? Lets just say this war was more than a mad man's plan.

He stretched out slowly, enjoying the warmth of the sun, the smell of wet earth and woods outside his window. A small happy laugh got away from him and he blushed at his behaviour, how improper for a well bred gentleman.

He was a long and lean man in his mid twenties, creamy skin a princess would grovel for and ginger gold hair that curled in a coquettish way at the ends, it was hell to keep looking tidy though.

This morning he brushed those stubborn locks of his in a hurry, it was not the gelled and contained professional 'do' he whore two years ago, no personal hairstylist now, and no need to strive for the proper facade.

-The proper me... hmmm- his mirror reflected Treize Kushrenada back at him.

A naughty smile was all the warning he gave his prim reflection before he rumpled his hair and strode of feeling wicked and ready for a new day. The elegant an sophisticated son of Duke Heinry Kushrenada was not what he wanted to see this morning or any other morning ever again.

Yes he was a self-sufficient, self-absorbed, egomaniac and a bastard in more ways than one (Thankfully few new the later) but today he was feeling too good to dwell on anything but his precious garden and his orchard's need for fertiliser. His night terrors gave him a break last night and that was a reason to celebrate.

He was feeling renewed after a whole night's sleep and this morning's quick shower and apple juice lasted till lunch.

Midday found him admiring his work.

Freshly moved soil and plump vegetables before him, his house at his back and beyond it, the tall Alps and their snowy peaks.

Bare feet he stood in the mud, the soft soles lending extra enjoyment to the gooey feeling. The plump lettuce was looking good, tomatoes blushing nicely. He tried hard to let some turn red but the last time he couldn't help gobbling them up green. This time he promise to let the things ripen.

"yeah, right" he grumbled at his own impatience.

-Face it! You are patient for a lot of things Treize but you just cant keep your hands to yourself when it comes to these tomatoes- he mussed while caressing the shinny skin, the smell of green rising to his nose.

-Maybe because there is no real obligation or need to? - his mind supplied.

He stomped lightly in the mud and smiled at the 'squishy' noise, wondering what time did it rain last night, he slept right true it anyway.

Mud was something he never thought anyone not of the porcine species could enjoy.

Trudging through the dark brown mess he made his way back to the cabin, reaching the stone deck, he turned on the water and pulled off the tin cotton T-shirt and working gloves, sweaty bangs sticking to forehead and graceful neck, perfectly toned torso was bared to the sun glowing in a such a way it would be pagan and sinful for any mortal eye to witness. Unconcerned, for once, of his appearance he hosed himself down with glee and dried briskly with a towel he later tossed to dry on the shrubs growing by the kitchen door.

This garden consisted mainly of thick rose bushes planted a long time ago when the ruined main house was still a grand palace, guarding the tall pillars now where the giant red thorns of Damask roses said to be Alexander the Grate's favourite.

The palace was now missing floor and roof, all left was the bare bones of it structure and a garden gone wild with tall trees towering at random, ad to these the multicoloured, gigantic, flower beds and Treize had a very exotic playground for himself.

Red china roses made a walkway to the house, across the maze of the old palace, ending at the grand stairway that led to the top of a small hill and onto the cabins front lawn, it was probably an old guest house but it had every modern commodity thanks to his uncle's effort.

The orchard was at the side of the cabin, he started it two years ago as a necessity since it was hard to get fresh food up here, not to mention risky for anyone to come up to often.

He missed the sea sometimes.

-Maybe I should bring in that towel, looks like rain ..-

He loved gardening, it was probably the only thing he loved from before.

Hands busy now making lunch he shrugged those thoughts away,

-pepper... where did I put it-

He spent so much time in the garden his skin had a healthy golden tan. Long gone memories of a tall pale blond who could use a tan drifted by unattended.

The distraction it provided now was not as tiresome a task as he expected, so his pet project was sometimes groomed and preened to exhaustion by his idle hands. Tinkering whit the plants allowed for time to pass by without contemplation of any kind.

Treize did not want to dwell on anything, it was not a conscious decision, but his mind needed a break after all. The way he was literally brought back to life had left him change and scarred worst than any war could have. Now was not the time to think about anything or anyone, nothing could brake his carefully constructed routine, he was in denial and some might even call it a fugue state but he only new that this was his house, this his garden and those were his toes covered in mud. Some part of his battered ego refused to admit any responsibility to the life he left behind.

Identity crisis? That was an understatement 

nice place to check out rose pictures. The Stanwell Perpetual, from the old world roses section, looks like pastry (yummy). XD


	2. chapter 2

****

Pepper & China Roses

By Rude.

Warnings:

AU, Possible OOC, yaoi, other stuff, maybe some angst.

Chapter 2 ****

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Back at the Preventers main building, Wufei strolled from one end to the other of Une's office while she spoke in sedate tones to her secretary on the com line.

The former Coronel had the calm facade of a business woman while her insides twisted around in anguish. The news of his Excellency's... remains... being moved. God it was so hard, even after all these years, to think of him in past tense.

She summoned Preventer Dragon to review a case this morning and he was as surprised as her when the ESUN delegate stormed in with the news. Agent Chang Wufei, code name Dragon, was the last person she wanted to learn of this.

- Maybe Mariemeia would have been worse - she hoped the child never found out about this new mess.

Wufei. The man who drove the killing blow home.

She could not bring herself to hate the boy, she followed the fight in space just like everyone else in the control room at the time. The boy had as much fault in his death as she did, or anyone else on earth for that matter. It was suicide... clear and simple.

She doubted the other pilots new exactly what had happen. After the battle and the failed Barton coup, the boys hardly saw each other outside the few missions that required more than one of them at a time.

They were not boys anymore. Young at 17 and 18, they were far from children even if they looked, physically at least, far away from men.

Smiling lightly, she spied Wufei pacing her office like a caged beast, he was a good example of what kind of training after effects they all suffered from. He would probably be lucky to grow a couple more inches, his tinny feet was a simple way of guessing this.

Combat boots in kid size was the standard for former Gundam Pilots, the uniforms in extra small size was their tell tale signature and the old matronly officer in charge of supplies relished every time a hopeful (but still grumpy ) Wufei will storm in her warehouse for his supplies.

The woman will pull a measuring tape out of her pocket and demand he stay still for her to check his measurements, he will sputter and growl at her but she will have none of this and went on raising his hands to lace the petite waist, the powerful but slim thighs and at last but not the least in their ritual, she pushed him to stand straight against the wall to measure his height. Every time he grew a millimetre she will smile at him and watch those eyes, black as a beetle's back, shine in contentment.

As commander of Preventers she had a regular gaggle of aides and secretaries to relate these little gems of information about there favourite little ducklings. The boys would blow a fuse if they found out the girls had nicknames for them.

Wufei growled something at her from his chair. When did he sit down?

"What was that agent Chang?"

"I said, will that be all commander?"

"Yes, needless to say discretion is required about this unexpected situation"

He nodded stiffly and left with barely restrained anger. She smiled tiredly,

- The little grump... could have sworn you called me a 'dallying onna'-

Now she was left to deal alone with the fact that someone wanted his excellency's grave to be moved.

It was hard enough to fine were to put it the first time, now someone sent a court order for her to do so in the next 48 hours. From what her aide had manage to dig up, the "official" reason for all this had something to do with his grave being in the same cemetery as some of the Alliance officers with the big family names...

'Didn't want some poor widow to visit her hubby's grave at the same ground where his alleged killer laid'

The real reason had more to do with money. A lot of people got compensation for loosing a family member, be it as a pension or a direct donation from organisations such as the ESUN, the money they provided came from anonymous accounts she new were formerly Oz and Alliance money now set to help rebuilt the Earth Sphere and Colonies after the damage they suffered during two hundred years of intermittent wars. Treize had even destined most of his family's assets for one of these accounts in his will, whatever was left was to be distributed amongst his surviving family.

In the past, wealthy families claimed millions from war mortality pensions, those who died in battle got juicy settlements even more so if they were well known in society. A lot more than those who had the same rank, died in the same battle and dint have any money or a big name. Under Alliance laws they did not have as much worth as the wealthier families.

Said families decided to pull their collective weight, now, as a political manoeuvre to attract attention. Also, the claim was made out of spite, since the vice foreign minister denied their petition for a memorial.

She snorted in disgust. 'Memorial? more like hulking displays of their mugs carved in stone! portraying themselves as martyrs and heroes....

His excellency has a humble tombstone amongst some bushes at the back of the lot. And he did far more for humanity than some pencil pushing, money laundering... '

The beeping of the vid phone interrupted her less than polite thoughts.

tbc


	3. chapter 3

Pepper & China Roses

By Rude.

Warnings:

AU, Possible OOC, yaoi, other stuff, maybe some angst.

Chapter 3 ****

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Morning brought a new set of choices to make.

What to wear, for one thing:

Those snug, comfortable jeans maybe; or the low riding, khaki slacks.

Shirtless?

Its rather warm outside.

He smirked at his reflection in the mirror, My, aren't we vain today!.

Summer had barely begun and he was happy to enjoy the weather... in the buff even. Wouldn't that be fun?

Never one to be body-shy, he now had a good reason to drop any inhibitions still remaining, after all, there is nobody here but the birds and a few bees; maybe that lazy old sun with nothing to do...-

He felt a slight longing, one he couldn't explain. So 'be what may', he chose to spend the day in those thin slacks instead of walking around naked.

He smiled at his own foolish fancy. Today was not a good day to burn one's most delicate parts, he explained to himself.

The truth was that walking naked was not so much fun if there was no risk of scandalising any one, or even tantalising someone. Not that Treize would ever admit to such boorish enjoyment.

It is silly and improper to walk out of the house like that, but worrying about what to wear when you are absolutely alone, is it not silly too?

Now two hours later, wandering into the forest, he tried hard to remember the last time he walked this far away from the house, but could not glimpse anything more than foggy blurs of memory. Like an old picture fading. He did not remember more than trees and little streams rolling down the numerous mountains around the wide green land.

He shacked his head and continue walking into the dense forest, rifle resting on his shoulder and a dead geese dangling in his hand.

Today was 'one of those days' at the office for Wufei. Agent Chang was reprimanded by Agent Po for barging into a building and dragging out a suspect by the last hairs on his balding head.

It was on the news now, all day they aired the scene he made at that casino; and maybe the guy deserved far worst in Wufei's opinion, but he was not yet a convicted felon and was now suing the Preventer organisation. For this Wufei ended up in Head Quarter's meeting room getting his posterior chewed out.

"Was it too much to ask for you to await the official arrest order?!"

"The first one was issued soon enough." Sally ground out a cuss word at his stiff necked reply.

"You 'know' there are two orders of arrest in political cases, Wufei: The one issued for Preventers and the one approved by the..."

He ignored the woman's ranting and stared blankly true her, he knew the protocol and memorised the new rules in law enforcement, approved and respected them. New laws for a new world. But today was a bad day to remind him of them.

'Stupid bureaucrats' He thought.

Wufei had to school his thoughts and posture while Sally droned the proverbial lecture.

Adding injury to insult, Merquise was there to witness him being scolded like a child.

What was the bastard doing here anyway?

He really didn't give a dam about Relena Peacecraft's demented brother, didn't help either that the blond barely acknowledged him during the whole meeting. It was Policy after all that in Une's absence, Sally and someone else of higher rank than Wufei assist in his debriefing.

At first Merquise just stared dispassionately at them, that is, until he heard Sally call him by his given name instead of his code-name. His eyes went cold as ice picks then, he crossed his arms without loosing that regal pose that marked him as royalty. Head lowered now, he followed Wufei's every word, clear blue eyes barely visible under that clear fringe of hair.

Wufei was used to the animosity in people's eyes every time they found out who he was. He was the unpopular Gundam Pilot, after all.

Merquise had double the reasons to hate him.

"Wufei, as of late your arrest sheet has grown impressively. It worries me sometimes how much work hours you put in to each case"

Po was playing it soft now.

"I work as hard as every other agent, commander Une has no complaints and I have never received any notice or fine for slacking off, ever!"

His stance was still stiff and staring above Sally's head.

"I never implied you did, we know how hard you work, you put in the required hours and effort, and I have no doubt you do more than that Wufei, in fact, you are working late every night. The night-shift cleaning staff know you better than your co-workers, Wufei?"

He bit back a come back when she sighed.

"The behaviour you exhibit yesterday, is maybe just a part of your character I overlooked when assigning this mission, and the fact that you are trained for other kinds of incursions combined to stress levels brought the present results.

It was bad judgement from both parts, yours and mine, to overlook your time sheet. You had eight high profile cases being resolved in two days. At least one was bound to go wrong. The one that got screwed up was the diplomatic scandal we are here for."

She stood up and walked to the large window viewing out to the city.

"I could have handled them all well enough but the 'second' arrest slip was taking long enough for the suspect to be informed and escape."

"You are not omnipresent Wufei!"

Sally spun and planted both hands flat on the table. He tried not to recoil from the unfamiliar tone, he needed to get back to work and put this all behind. He needed strong tea and his laptop right now.

Merquise was still spying him from under those phantom strands of gold hair.

It irked him to no end; the simple capture of a colony-wide known money laundering, cockroach. All turned into a circus because a few former-Romafeller old vultures owed the guy money.

He followed the man into a popular casino, gaudy show places like that made a comeback after 300 years of being banned. He sited his target...'suspect', "proposed" as Maxwell would call it (informed him he was arrested and would need a doctor if he resisted arrest), pull out the cuffs and clipped them to his wrists. All hell broke loose when the weasel-like imitation of a man begun to struggle and scream like an onna.

His henchmen came to the rescue. In Wufei's book this was resisting arrest.

'Nough said he got the guy "and" his would-be-cavalry in an ambulance.

Zechs just sat there with that insufferable stance. Those icy eyes reminded him of much more than his recent fiasco.

Peacecraft , or whatever he called himself nowadays, the closest man to his dead enemy.

Chang Wu Fei was not good at handling certain memories and the emotions that came with them.

He sucked in the failures and at night, pillowed his head on past pains.

He learned restraint in his youth; war and lost added to guilt and a savage wake-up-call to reality, had moulded his character.

So, at times like this, his temper got out and walked side by side with him.

He felt like growling and cutting something up. People ploughed away from him as he marched through the building and into the elevator, he didn't even notice the poor sap that jumped out of it mumbling a poor excuse to let him have the cramped space for himself.

He let the thing go down, to the lobby of the building, and continued his randomly chosen path like a black storm cloud. A little one... But a very mean and irate storm cloud.

From his perch on HQ's patio deck, Zechs watched the youngest Preventer agent. His eyes still set like a bird of prey on him.

"So... you took out Treize, little thing. Not much to look at, are you?"

Zechs felt spiteful and angry today. It was probably the worst day for Chang to finally meet him. Today was the anniversary of the young general's death.

Treize was his, his... what?

'Ally? Never! the man had none other than the Lady, Zechs was loath to admit he was the one who had no allies.

Friend? nemesis?

'What' were you? Treize, I would have killed you myself if it had brought any pain or regret to that frosted hearth of yours. At the time you challenged me to a duel...'

He laughed mirthlessly at this.

'Everything was a game for you; the war, your title, Leia... you never even mentioned Mariemeia'

It hurt to know the man called him a friend, in such suave tones, and never really confided him anything personal. They new each other since childhood and he still could not recognise the man he became at the end. His final show of that bizarre personality was his last words on the com line, he will be waiting for Milliardo, his eternal friend, ...to join him in the afterlife. But only Wufei had heard those last words.

Zechs Merquise was far out of reach when Tallgeese's weak signal went out.

He never heard it.

He never understood why the devious man had drove him away,

"Why couldn't you leave me alone Treize?"

Feeling despondent, he sipped the cooling coffee by his side and went back to the office Une had appointed for him.

tbc

What ya' think?


	4. chapter 4

It has a touch of supernatural -or maybe not, depends on whether or not you believe uncle Luddo to be sane - -

Chapter 4 ****

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Theodore Luduvicko Kushrenada, also known as crazy Luddo, was feeling whimsical today. On account of this, he dug in his large treasure chest for a hat best suited to describe his new mood. He felt it burbling up somewhere in his gut, a bit zesty, but still not quite…there. It could be gas, but old Luddo thought otherwise.

"Panache! This will do!"

Out of a blue nest of feathers and shinny beads came: first one horn, then the whole Viking helmet.

It was old -as were most of his belongings- but intact. Twin ram horns atop a cone-shaped head piece, with iron trappings bolting them all together.

"Ooooh this will do all right!"

He ceremoniously fitted it on his grey crown, looked himself up and down in a monstrously big and dusty mirror, nodded twice and stomped down the attic stairs with glee. Nothing unusual there.

"Yes sires! Now all I need is my boat and I will find me lovely Brunilda today!!" He chortled.

Luddo was the elder brother of the last Arch Duke of Luxembourg, the rightful heir to the title he handed over with not a second thought; that was more than a century ago.

He may be the wealthiest man in the country, and then some, but he was also… How shall we put this… a bit of a loon, perhaps?

His brother -_Nathaniel was the noble lad's name_- went on as was expected,

Living as full a life as was allowed to a head of state: He married a beautiful upper-class lady. They had four children, two of which died in the Gemini Wars (_Luddo dressed his saddest black Top-hat for a year_). Nathaniel went on though and ruled with a steel grip, both his remaining country and his family.

"Yes, Nat old boy, you did what had to be done… no one can argue that. You were a good man even if you were such a hard ass…"

His tombstone said as much in bold Romanic letters:

****

His Excellency

Nathaniel Heinry Kushrenada

Arch Duke of Luxembourg

Honoured sire and leader,

Died in devoted allegiance to his countrymen and kin.

AC 123 - AC 176

Now, before his grave in the family plot, Luddo could still see the skinny eight-year-old with the hard blue gaze smirking at him under the tree. Those eyes seemed more alive now than when he last saw them -so long ago- on a balding head. Now they were back under the fringe of dark blond hair, sparkling with knowledge.

"You are up to something Nathanieeeel…" He commented in a singsong tone.

He was four years the eldest and new his little brother's quirks and gests. This particular expression could only mean: - I know something that you don't -

He brushed off the dried leaves and flowers, he knew they would keep toppling down on the marble slab anyway but when you are old, you do things like that.

Before him the stout lilac tree shaded this spot in the graveyard. In return for her services, she fed on his brother's old bones, roots probably tangled around him now.

He died twenty-something years ago. Heinry, his eldest son, gave him only one grandchild: the heir to the Kushrenada name. But what a devil he came out to be.

Luddo guffawed while he sat on -his- grandparents grave. Moira and her husband Paul, Centuries old now.

"That one was a firecracker, people!"

He laughed to the dozens of graves around him. All expensive chunks of rock elaborately carved and adorned. Statues of angelic creatures and gothic mausoleums dotted the place as well as the wild flowers amongst old trees and vines, growing rampant. Not 200 feet away, the enormous castle he called home, watched over his back.

He sat cross-legged on his old folk's gargantuan slab and shred the plastic wrapper from his sandwich. An angel covered in moss stared down at him, hand poised on its lips, as if bestowing a kiss.

"Musch like hish uncle Luddo, sthat one!" he commented around a mouthful of chunky tuna and mayo.

"So… How is it going? You folks doing ok today?" he addressed the cold crowd with bright eyes, his hand reaching for the bottle of wine in his coat pocket.

Lady Une shook off her olive coloured coat, flapping The Preventer's s logo with the motion for the world to see. It was still raining as she entered the ESUN office in Luxembourg, and now, as water poured down the elevator's glass walls, she stared out at the bleak sky. She saw noting but that casket being lift and plunked down in a truck bed… the machine was yellow, it was inadequate for it to be yellow.

Two hours ago she was at the burial site of her former leader -and love interest- Treize Kushrenada. His remains transported to a shuttle port and stored in an empty docking bay for safekeeping.

It was still anyone's guess where he would be buried now. His -hopefully- final resting place was being decided in this building and Commander Une was here to make sure he wouldn't be dumped into space like so much flotsam. It was suggested by historians that in the early days, dated pre colony, people actually wanted their remains to be left adrift in space. It was probably another messed up bookworm's theory.

"The present problem would easily be solved if you allowed a simple honouring ceremony on an ESUN shuttle…"

A glare he received from across the table effectively quieted the lawyer. He huffed and sat back down, arms cross defiantly he recapitulated the debate.

"So at present, our choices are: one, to expedite the transfer to another city in the country while keeping this place a secret and risking civil unrest. Two, publicly expatriate the remains to a neighbouring country, never mind none of the border countries or others in this hemisphere have answered to our request. A Third choice, an outer space service is vigorously opposed by the family's representative, leaving us with less than 12 hours to do something. This may not be a crisis or an impending threat to peace, but we most do what's best to side-step any political snares."

He primed his tie not looking at any of the people around the table, but he couldn't hide a sidelong glance at the Preventer commander when he added "I don't need to warn you all of the potential for this to become a crusade to former OZ or a witch-hunt for bitter ex-Alliance."

Through all this Une remained impassive. She understood the situation better than anybody in this room but she refused to look complacent about it, so, for this meeting she just dropped that porcelain façade to show them a glimpse of the 'Colonel' Lady Une.

She will never wear her cruel persona like a badge again - she learned that much - but she will remind them, the ESUN board of trustees, who they were trying to sweep under the rug.

So she took seat not only as Preventer but also as the family representative, in her role as Mariemaeia Kushrenada's custodian. Yes it was shameless of her to use the child to gain leverage but none of his Excellency's next of kin had responded to the summons, leaving it up to her to at least ensure things were taken care of respectfully.

The meeting could not be extended anymore than a couple of hours, else the press read into it more than there was. At present, the newly recovered freedom of speech included a loosened leash for news networks. They were still subservient to the higher powers but Relena had nudged them to be more 'inquisitive and truthful' in a speech addressing the reasons for so many crimes to go unnoticed. Yes, centuries of war and repression cowed them a bit.

"Not enough it seems…" Muttered Une as her aide led them to a back door exit, when the meeting was over. A small group of nervous reporters had gathered outside the building. The clerk invited them in and announced in a factual tone.

"By request of his immediate family, a private ceremony will be held at sea tomorrow for the late Treize Kushrenada. Only family and a few close friends will be in attendance."

"No mentions of the reasons for the exhumation, or comments on the exact place were given. In other related news Foreign Vice Minister Darlian comforted the widows of…"

She muted her vid screen and sighed at the moon glowing outside her window.

Simple solution, but not what she wanted for Mariemaeia. The child's only request was, if possible, to leave her a marking to visit. Spreading ashes over the ocean was not fair for the girl; Une was long past her need to obsess over the man but Mariemaeia needed to keep in mind the memory of the real General Kushrenada not the fallacy she was raised to worship in Barton's house. She had a hard enough life to face now, anyway, for some war-snobs to rob her of that.

So it was that, publicly the funeral at sea was held and ashes were scattered, flower wreaths dumped overboard, champagne served on a big white ship -similar to the one he was so fun of- this one of course was borrowed or rented; and in the meantime she had bought some time to find a new hidden spot for Mariemaeia to visit.

So was the true agreement, settled in the small assembly. It held no real importance but as a favour to his daughter and thanks to the press snooping at their door, the group of tired politicians with much better things to do acquiesced to one last misinformation bulletin. Une had a week to bury him again anywhere she saw fit to common interests.

Why go through all this trouble? Because you just can't let the bad guys win.

Now to attend to that headache and start making plans. She never new any of his Excellency's relatives or anyone, for that matter, he trusted more than her or Zechs.

The kingdom of Sanque was not a good place, not in a political sense at least.

The ideal solution was to find a piece of soil in his family's name and away from the public eye, that way no one could contest or attempt trespassing as easily as in a public graveyard. She shuddered remembering the last time someone decided to pay a visit to his grave. Fortunately Marie was still in the car while the agents secured the place, she didn't saw the naked couple digging up the unmarked tombstone; male and female, obviously high on something, both ex-military. It was unclear which faction they belonged to during the war or what they intention was but it gave Une something to think about the whole trip back to Marie's home.

That was a year ago.

Somewhere in the country, there should be a spot safe and dignified enough for the girl to sit by her side and together, make some sense of the past.

Tbc.


	5. chapter 5

Pepper & China Roses

By Rude.

Warnings:

AU, Possible OOC, yaoi, other stuff, maybe some angst.

Chapter 5 

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It took him all week but he finally tracked down the lawyer representing Patricia Fiftenthe Kushrenada.

A second cuisine of Treize, Dame Fiftenthe owned a small import/export business that, regardless of the political situation, was thriving. Lately, at the end of the war, it turned increasingly profitable; or so he read in the Sanque Business Journal.

Une had spent a lot of her valued time tracking her down just to get the door slammed in her face, rhetorically speaking. For some reason, she refused to see the Preventer commander. Wu Fei on the other hand, skipped the usual channels and tracked her down.

He showed up unannounced at her hotel, The Novo Negresco. It was luxurious in the most antique way and the high roof imitated a blue sky, mythical creatures flying around in its expanse.

The scholar in him was in awe… two seconds later the warrior took over and he headed to the restaurant where he was told he would come across the woman.

She spent a lot of time doing business over a table in a cosy sunroom.

Surely enough, as describe to him by hotel employees, the middle aged woman was sitting on an ornate chaise long (_more like a wicket throne! _he thought), laptop computer on the table aside a plate of entrées and a bottle of spritzer.

Dame Fiftenthe was a 37-year-old diva. Red hair tied in a bun matched by prim red nails and a flowery summer dress. As he moved closer he found himself pinned by a pair of familiar blue eyes that made his step falter and his hearth rate pickup a notch.

"Why, Hello young man."

He caught himself staring and blushed. He bowed a bit in greeting and just stood there trying to find his tongue, and failing miserably. The aristocrat's face showed more amusement by the second. Finally Wu Fei cleared his throat and begun his little speech:

"I am here on behalf of Mariemaeia Kushrenada…"

One forked eyebrow rose and the Chinese boy almost stammered. Bravely he preached-on.

When he was finish with his formal request, she smiled kindly at him and patted the green cushion by her side. Wu Fei's eyes widened, but she pin him with her blue one's and he ended up sitting stiffly aside the reclining woman.

He was aware of the very public place now, and although she was not flirting with him (for justice sake! She could be his mother!), it felt like everyone was watching him.

"Would you care for a drink? Its non alcoholic" She added while looking at his boyish face and shy eyes.

Wu Fei had the sinking suspicion that she thought him to be _cute,_ and for some reason, he could not 'correct' her mistake the way he usually would if she was anyone else.

"No thank you, I am here only to forward your answer to Commander Une"

"Pft, nonsense!" She exclaimed with a volley of her hand.

Ignoring his answer she leaned over to pour the bubbly, peach-coloured stuff into twin tall flute glasses. Her generous cleavage showed while doing so and poor Wu Fei's face turned pink. A waiter glanced their way with a suspicious little smirk. 'Immodest onna!'

"It's a warm summer day and we should enjoy it, while we can. That's what war taught me! Let that 'Lady' wait."

By the way she said the last, it was easy to tell she disliked Une. But if so: didn't Une mention on the phone she never knew any of the general's family?

Maybe they knew her? Or at least this one did.

She was one of the few family members still willing to participate in any event involving her family's name, all the other Kushrenadas were denying Treize or politely excusing themselves of any social event. Wu Fei even heard of a couple of them changing their names. Not as wealthy or socially involved, they felt they had a better chance in the new world order by severing all ties with the dead leader.

"Cowards the lot of them! Butchering their ancestors namesake to skirt around the past." He grumbled later, as he dialled Une's number.

It took him an hour of enduring chit chat with the dame -_And the woman did love to chit chat!!!-_ She ended up snooping in his life and talking about everything and anything while saying nothing. She could give Maxwell a run for his money.

At the end, she handed him over a piece of paper and sent him on his way like a little boy on an errand.

She even slapped him on the rump…

He squeaked and turned back to glared at her with murder in his eyes, but she only winked at him and went back to her business, greeting someone with a briefcase and ignoring the string of Chinese cuss-words he left in his wake.

Wu Fei never felt so flustered in his life, at least not since the time he walked in on Yuy and Maxwell's 'game of tag' back in the war. He 'will' demand a raise after this injustice!

Une was surprised when Wu Fei marched up to her desk in his usual petulant fashion and handed over a piece of flowery-scented paper.

"This onna knows of a safe place outside of Luxembourg. Its owned by the family and there will be no trouble or complaints even if it was to be discovered by the press"

She smiled at him gratefully; so far the only place she had secured was out in the middle of nowhere, not even a road for access, and attached to it, came a pompous lawyer demanding economical compensation. The man wanted them to pay rent and Une was almost desperate enough to accept.

She recognised the area and the name on the authorisation and she new it was perfect, she tried for this place for three days but the caretakers had no knowledge the woman whereabouts. Now incredibly Wu Fei had convinced the elusive Fiftenthe to hand over a spot on one of her numerous properties. The persistent little guy struck gold.

"You didn't have to do this Wu Fei,"

"Hn" he grunted, "I believe I do. It's a security risk to have this matter stretching into oblivion."

"Agent Chang you know me better than that."

She smiled again, reading straight through his tough-guy act.

Wu Fei grunted some more and tried to keep his disdainful frown.

"If you will excuse me I have real work to do"

With this caustic remark he turned tail and headed to the door.

"Wu Fei?"

"Hn?"

"You will escort Marie and myself to this address for a new funeral service, as you said there is real work to be done, you are on our security detail Agent Dragon."

Une was in need of a camera now; the expression on the boy's face was priceless and for a moment she almost laughed when his back suddenly stiffened. He whirled around, fists clenching, wide-eyed and sputtering. She sobered up at the haunted look in his eyes.

Was that fear?

Zechs Merquise was busy; today he had his hands full and it suited him just fine.

Files on any conceivable, OZ participation in the war were being catalogued and handed out for detailed evaluation. He got a few dozen from the pile and headed to his computer like an automata, silvery bangs hiding his face from the other agents milling around, all of them groaning at the workload. Who could blame them?

Most of the files were junk anyway: uniform requisitions, accounting and a few MS spec.'s -those were to be sealed or destroyed-. Yes, a lot of people out there could still reassemble a Taurus or a Cancer if they got their hands on the hardware, that is, of course; if another team of agents hadn't already identified these people and kept track of their every move.

The former war technicians had converted to civil life now, Relena and other dignitaries provided them with well-paid jobs in the industrial area; their skills now in great demand after the long wars.

A lot of things needed not only rebuilding but also modernising.

Zechs was glad for those who could start all over again and show their faces in the sun, he tried it for a while, peace. Didn't work out.

He made a run for Mars a year ago, _tailed by Noin_.

He worked hard on the red planet alongside a group of hippie scientist. They acted like Relena clones, all bright eyed and idealistic… 'Nough said, after the failed Mariemaeia coup, he ended up staying on earth and living the only way he could.

As a Preventer agent he contributed to a new society and live as a free, harmonic individual; at least that's what the brochure claimed.

Few people new his face but they all sooner or later found out, unlike the Gundam pilots anonymity was not an option. So he more often than not spent his days cooped up in the very big enclosure of Preventer Head Quarters.

He stamped a disk with the ESUN mark and propped it up on his out-bin.

Noin stopped following him a few months ago and he felt lonely. Ironically he never thought he would miss her this badly.

He new she would tire of his platonic affection some day, but it still hurt -even worse than it should because of the way they parted-.

It happened when she spotted him late one evening at the shooting range, leaning in a dark corner, noting on him more than his sweatpants and a baton.

He never new she was there until he pulled of the sweaty clothing and rimmed himself with the blunt end of the weapon; a shocked 'squawk' gave her away.

Now he shrank further into his chair just from the memory of it. Her expression: somewhere between nauseous and panicking. He laughed at her back then…

'Hysterical, Milliardo, hysterical… What the fuck was I thinking?'

Someone in the office was calling it an evening, saying goodbye to co-workers and ignoring the tall blond in the cubicle by the window. They all learned to steer clear of the lighting count.

'I was drunk that's all! People do stupid things when drunk…'

Never mind he took only four swings of the bottle when he started playing around and his training exercise became something else… private but strange.

He was sweating and angry one minute then he was pressing his heated back on a cold wall… it felt so cool there in the dark, so good. He rubbed the hard smooth staff on his chest, it was hot from his handling, and he thought it would be cold and metallic, he didn't expect the warmth and it jolted him, yet… his hand was ignoring the shock and was moving on its own need, it guided the baton around his nipples and Zechs went away with the wave.

He refused to admit his problem with sexual interaction, or any kind of interaction with another human being. He grilled himself everyday to be able to interact normally at work. It was his training he blamed, an officer and a warrior was all he could see himself as. There was much more to it but he only saw what he needed to, the tip of the iceberg was what he knew and felt safe on.

He was aware Noin putted-up with his frigid nature because of some misplaced romantic notion or maybe she too was having trouble fitting in and felt safer with what she knew. No… he was kidding himself she fitted in just fine. It was him she fell back to help.

'The poor tormented prince! One look at the deranged animal under the sheep skin and she ran for dear life.'

He whacked another disk with the stamp and loaded the next on the computer.

'Who can blame her, I hid it so well she had not a chance of … '

He would never know that Noin was there to ask him to be more than friends, "No more flirting!" she told Sally earlier "That man is so dense he is never going to get it unless I show up with a ring and a judge."

Instead she got an eyeful, at first. She was turned on like a bonfire when he started rubbing his chest with the baton and when he unlaced the pant's drawstring she was about to join him, she even came out from behind the pillar she was hiding but she was frozen mid-step when the shinny black weapon turned into a phallus and headed south.

Across from his desk, Noin's empty one reminded him of the kind of person he really was.

She swore to never speak to the man again and left the Preventers to join Relena's security detail. Une never commented what reasons she gave for quitting, and that just made him feel worst.

It was hard having that empty desk, and all those people around ignoring him, trying to steer clear of his steel blue gaze. He didn't mind, even liked them being afraid of him, until he had to face them without Noin hanging on his arm to do the talking. Even eating at the cafeteria was hard, he had to sit alone and suffer the covert glances -and the overt ones too- while he pushed his food around the plate. It was hard for a soldier to be targeted so openly and not have someone to cover his back, especially at such a weak moment as eating. It probably was an animal thing.

What have I become?

He ended up bringing his lunch to the office and escaping to a balcony or the patio deck, to eat alone; it was up there he spotted Chang the other day…

'He! The little runt'

He rested his head on crossed arms; everybody went home already so he could allow the weakness to show. At least he thought they had.

"Hello Agent Po, what can I do for you?"

"Zechs."

The former guerrilla chief nodded at him and handed out a new set of disks for reviewing. She wouldn't be here personally unless it was serious. He took one in his hand and checked for labels, none found he looked back at the slanted blue eyes.

'Yes, something serious all right.'

Tbc.

Sorry if I messed up on the grammar or anything. Working hard to get better at this … ,… And review please! It truly is fuel for the writer.


	6. chapter 6

Pepper & China Roses

By Rude.

Warnings:

AU, Possible OOC, yaoi, other stuff, angst.

Chapter 6

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Sally regarded the tall blond with worry. His dark green uniform was prim and perfectly ironed and creased, he sat up straight pretending she didn't see him collapsed on his desk when she walked in. The only visible sign of exhaustion was the slight grimace around the lips and the weary look around his eyes. This was the second case of overworked pilot she had to deal with this week.

"This is Treize's medical file?"

"Yes, it seems now that his ashes have been disposed of there is a resurgence of people claiming to be related to him. Some even go as far as to report 'seeing' the general"

Zechs laughed mirthlessly. "Is that so?"

"Its a bit more serious than it sounds, Merquise. Some people hold their claims based on DNA matching, we had his Excellency's file in a secure area to prevent these scams but there was a leak. It could've happen at some point between the transition from the Romafeller's data base to Preventers."

Zechs nodded, pointedly ignoring the file on his desk.

"You want me to track down the culprits? I can assure you your its too late for that, every black market vendor most have these stacked like magazines on a news stand by now."

Sally narrowed eyes told him she new this already, so...

"Or is there a particular claim that interest you?"

"Not really, the only claim I find interesting is my own"

Zechs raised an eyebrow "Oh?"

"I checked the code in these files. There is an obvious slip in them."

She waited for a reaction but he didn't even flinch just sat there expecting her to elaborate.

"I have both Mariemaeia's and Treize's DNA sequences. They are not related according to this file. I need your input on this matter Zechs"

The man read the file with grim detachment. Sally trudged on while he did.

"We cannot discredit these claims if our medical files on him are unreliable. There is no intention to heed these claims anyway, but you can see how the situation could escalate. I for one thing, am not too keen on informing Une of this without clearing a few doubts."

Sally slumped down in Noin's chair with a sigh. She almost felt sorry to do this to him, but the situation was a bit too delicate to be left in the hands of anyone else. Wufei was out on some mission or another Une had picked him for, at least that's what he said. Even if he was free, she would never get him involved in anything _Kushrenada_ related, the boy had many sore spots left by the war and that one was particularly painful. From Zechs tight lipped attitude, she could tell Wufei was not alone on this.

"It's not an official matter yet, just me being inquisitive. So it is as a personal favor, that I'm asking you to help me out. Can you verify the code on this file?"

The blond nodded in acceptance, poker face still up.

"Yes, the code 'is' correct. The contents of the file under this code is another story."

He smiled at the relief written all over the commander's face. She would probably forget it with what he had to say next.

"There is no accurate file in existence, Sally. So there is nothing to match."

"You mean there is no record of him in any Oz or Romafeller archive somewhere?"

"I am afraid not, we did away with every one as soon as they were written"

"Huh?" was her intelligent remark.

"He thought me to fake these registry numbers during our academy years. It was a skill that came in handy later, when the Alliance started the 'purges' amongst their ranks."

He didn't have to look up from the papers in his hands to know the look on Sally's face.

"I think he knew who I was, back then. Funny I didn't realize it until know... That's why he thought me this neat little trick." He added waving the folder.

She knew exactly why people would hide their records, after all she once was an Alliance Medical officer.

The purging of possible spies in the Alliance were often done aided by medical records. Medics in the Earth Sphere where specially dedicated to the cause and had no qualms in delivering their patients records to the government, just in case they could help locate a traitor and ad a shinny star to their badges.

"Every 3 years or so, they renewed their hunting for former enemies and their relatives. Most of Sanq monarchy disappeared within the first decade of the fall. Forging my records was very costly, during that time almost, always impossible."

Did he paled just now?

"I remained undetected during my academy years and after, thanks to Treize's habit of swapping these files. It is very likely that you will never get the original DNA sequence."

"Why would Treize swap these files? Who did 'He' have to hide from?"

Zechs smiled, the first real smile.

"I think he liked keeping them on their toes, Romafeller, Alliance and rebels alike."

Sally bit her lip, itching to ask for more but sensing they had deviated enough from the subject. Besides, she couldn't forget that she was once one of those eager cadets trying to fit in and ready to make a name for herself. While people like Zechs, mere children had to live looking over there shoulder in fear of the like's of her.

She stood up ready to leave.

"His real code is the one stated on the top of the file, but the contents of this is from someone else. If your file was not updated to match the remains you cremated and dumped in the sea, there is no way you can question these claims."

She choked on this one. "You mean... We may not even have the right body?"

"DXTS 54690127 is the ID number corresponding to one Treize Kushrenada. His DNA, finger prints, retinal scan, dental prints they are filed under this number. Since Treize swapped those, you most confirm that the body retrieved was in fact his. If they used the files to verify his identity, you probably have the wrong guy."

He watched the woman turn from surprised, to disturbed to murderous in a couple seconds.

"Why the fuck did you sit on this?"

Zechs frowned and sat back, fingers laced together in his lap. "Une probably knows this already, even if she didn't it does not matter. He is dead. There is a body, a grave, and a grieving crowd. That's more than most people got out of this war."

The man thinks he is made of stone. Hmphf! We will see about that.

Une was a fine one too, if she knew this was a hoax! Well maybe not a hoax, not from the way she acted when the body was retrieved. Yes maybe the files where a mess, but the body recovered was still in their possession. She would begin from there.

She had two or tree Kushrenada family members DNA sequences to couple up to Mariemaeia's. If she truly was his daughter then she had a reliable, if partial, ID.

It will take a half an hour at most to confirm if this body truly belonged to the former leader of OZ. It was late now and she had a couple phone calls to make.

The next morning found the good doctor in her office, packing her lab kit.

Une and a few other people, including Noin, had seen the body and recognized him. Sally new how emotion and certainty could make you see what you needed to see. The body was mangled and found in pieces around the debris, it was possible that they buried parts of another body by accident in the haste everything was done after the positive ID. The pilot suit was burned into the skin so completely they buried him with it. Zechs was in Mars when it all happened, but Sally doubted he would have gone to the ceremony if he could.

The doctor in her couldn't let this mystery go down into darkness. While there was still a body in one of those hold-ups by the shuttle port, there was still a chance to clear this. After a sleepless night and a short talk with commander Une, she was ready to go.

On her way to her car, she came face to face with an equally sleep-deprived, Zechs Merquise.

"May I join you?" he rumbled in that deep voice of his. 'Poor Noin'.

She gave him her best cocky grin and slammed her lab-kit into his chest "You may"

He took the heavy little metal case and followed the swaying pig tails out into the parking lot. 'It is any-man's guess why she keeps such a girlish hair style, the woman used to be the bane of Coronel Une for peace sake!'

"Commander Une informed me this morning of her success in finding a spot. The transfer will take place tomorrow evening, when the new site his ready. She also left me a message for you and a few others, on behalf of Marie. You are invited to assist in the small ceremony that will be held. She will appreciate your presence on behalf of her charge."

The formal speech, was her way of telling him that Une considered this his duty and left no room for argument on the matter.

Zechs was not amused, if Sally had known him better she would have guess his answer to be: "No"

She growled and started the car in a unified roar. "You missed the first one, you may as well show up for the second! I don't think their will be a third for when you finally decided to stop being a jackass..."

He was not going to budge on this and she knew it. She was after all talking to the guy that tried to blow up Earth.

An hour later they arrived to the cargo area, and drove by slowly in search of the right hold-up building. As the big gray numbers passed by, Zechs spoke softly.

"Noin warned me you will act this way."

"What?"

'Got your attention now mister iceberg.'

"She said you will face a heard of demons in Mobile Suits, armed only with your arrogance and a gun. But you will run away, like your ass was on fire, from anything involving emotions."

He glanced at her with those cold eyes narrowed. "Agent Po you are treading into matters that do not concern you."

To his surprise, she laughed.

The car was left behind and they went in the building full of crates and boxes, most of which where labeled as colony stock.

He was baffled and horrified that Noin could be talking about him with anyone, and he had a feeling Sally knew it irked him too. His glacial glare had no effect on the woman and she smiled now, while they walked the gloomy isle looking for the box..

"What's it to you?"

She had to take a minute to rewind an remember what he could be asking about.

"I am here now, to get things cleared up because its my duty as a Preventer.

Tomorrow, I will be in that ceremony to pay my respects to a little girl and group of boys who grew up to fast ...and maybe to make sense of a few things."

"The Gundam pilots will be there?"

Sally nodded as she turned to a large crate. She knew now he would go.

Une had given her orders to continue with the plan even if it turned out to be someone else. The woman had changed since the war, or perhaps it was just the same practical mind in motion, _'His Excellency would have understood'_ she told Sally on the phone this morning.

"We are here"

The container was in the back and when Sally pulled at the door handle, a gust of cool air flushed out on them. They walked into the cooler in silence. There where small boxes pilled here and there but the one in the middle was the only one large enough to contain a human body. The label on its side confirmed it was the one they sought.

Zechs felt like an intruder, it was close to midday and the place was quiet,

'everybody is on their lunch-brake, probably' only the lone guard at the front gate had greeted them.

__

'Treize is in that box...' his subconscious tried to nock him the joker card. He ignored the stupid thought and took to the task of unhooking the top with vehemence. Sally watched him a bit of worried, his eyes slanted but she could see the slightly dilated pupils.

__

'There is a rotting corpse in there... torn to pieces, it belongs to the man who called you a friend' His subconscious was stapling little memos like this in every dark corner of his brain.

His movements were heavy and rough from all the unwanted memories flying around inside him. All his experiences with lost and death communed to remind him this was what was left of the person closest to him... Inside a box. 'This is ridiculous! get it together Merquise!'

He took the crow bar from Sally and yanked open the top only to find another box with metal clasps at each end. Po was ready to take the crowbar from him when he dropped it aside and went back to his self-appointed mission.

His mind was calling him a coward. When Treize chose to die, Zechs was already running around for a new kindred soul. Noin, Heero anybody who could point him the way or at least hold his hand till he got there.

"Damit! How many latches does this thing have?"

"Zechs..."

Too many things he couldn't face where connected to this dam corpse. Treize was no more! It's just a corpse and he had dealt with those for as long as he could remember.

****

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Tbc

I have finished my research on Treize! (Got me out of writers block...)

Thank you Rogue-sama for the clue! (bows)

Episode 34 does tell a lot about Treize, actually it sums up his core even if at the moment he was at his lowest.

I was always bombarded with so many political view points and philosophy in the series, that its hard to focus on what he is saying (specially with what he is doing going on in the background)

__

Did anybody catch the look on his face when he push Septem off the shuttle?

__

He is noooo sweetheart. And Heero is right! he is a poor loser. I would also ad: gracious winner. But that's debatable.

Treize in the GW series is much different than I imagined (less complex) and at the end of his life he... well I don't want to give away my plot. Its base on what I got so far on his character. Just please remember this is AU so his views have changed, although I will try to keep him in character.

Lets just say that you have to read in between the lines to understand him, he doesn't think in straight lines and he is not the best example of positive thinking.


	7. chapter 7

****

Chapter 7

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Wufei was running down the hills like a mad man. It was absurd! This couldn't be happening to him!

His slipper clad feet, were showing no grace or skill. Just gliding him through mud and bramble with the grace of a duck. He was pale as parchment now, all he could hear was the boom of his own hearth and the thunderous trashing of his pursuer.  
Never in his short life had he been so frightened! Not even when his dead grandmother had chased him out of her house. It was my own fault! I should have left the old bat's things alone!!

But his grandmama was not a fearsome warrior and Wufei was not responsible for her death. Back then his little feet took him with lightning speed to the safety of his mother's underskirt.

Now, the horror was almost at his heels! And there was no way out of this cursed forest.

He should have waited for the castle's tenant instead of wandering off into the woods.

No time for regrets now, all he could think of was to keep on running.

Reason said bye, bye and flew out the window ...or probably, got lost too in the woods.

The man he grudgingly came to respect and even admire in secret, was far from his mind right now, all he could think of was that he was right and his father was wrong! Ghost 'DO' exist and they had it in for him!

The sound was deafening. He felt the cold air wafting at his neck and with each glimpse behind he could make out the hulking body and hands like claws tearing into the under brush. Shadows of fangs gnashing at his feet and yellow eyes darting in and out of his path. There were so many! And 'he' was laughing!

Wufei's fight-or-flight instinct ran past him screaming like an onna two minutes ago.

Why me?! What did I do to deserve... ?

well he 'did' technically... kill the man. But, still!

"Why MEEEEEE!" he hollered when his slipper made a swishing sound

...and down into the gully, he fell.

He was 5, maybe 6 years old when his grandmother died. She was the kind of old lady the family tried to keep happy, not exactly because of her age, which was nearing the millennia according to the kids calculations. Certainly not for her gentle disposition, either. Wufei remember people calling her a 'Quilin' in the guise of a woman:

She spat fire from that creased old maw, had a lion head, a goat body and a dragon tail. _(Wufei never saw the tail but he was shore it was back there, somewhere under all those robes_).

Needless to say, they all bowed and nodded any time she started barking orders around. All but one feisty little toddler.

To the fearless little tot, she was a source of amusement. He never understood why anyone would obey the tinny old crone. She was not any bigger than him! Why could she have her way and little Wufei had to do so many chores and obey mama, papa, uncles, even aunts and cousins! Any one a head taller could boss him around, that meant everybody in that side of the colony.

So the brat in him vowed to make Quilin's life a little less happy.

From then onward, the old lady found her self in all kinds of predicaments thanks to her grandchild's antics.

Once he locked her into the bath house... for 4 hours, before a maid found the door jammed by a bench and heard the furious cane knocking on the door. Quilin came out with double the wrinkles and triple the temper.

The old lady suspected him every time and called him a Tengu, even if he had no nose as she claimed, but little Fei fei came scat free. His father's mother was no problem to him! After all, his mama went to the rescue anytime grandma threatened to slap a whammy on his rump.

In retrospect he probably deserved one, he was spoiled rotten and had an unhealthy appreciation for other peoples things. Specially the treasures she hid in her dwelling.

The people living in L5 colonies brought with them the culture, artifacts and beliefs of old China. So it was that seven days after she died, his grandmother was expected to return on that same night.

Everyone locked themselves in their rooms and white powder was dusted on the floor in the main room; a red plaque was placed on the front gate to make sure her spirit didn't get lost, even an altar was setup as welcome...

Fearless Fei fei thought this to be his golden opportunity!

He marched out of the nursery and into the main hall, everybody was sleeping, so he climbed over the sofa to escape leaving little foot prints in the flour; then up onto the altar he stopped to eat a few of the sweets they left for offering.

Later, he licked the candy off his chubby fingers while he skipped his way into the dead woman's room.

Midnight found him in the old crone's bed chambers. He loved the many trinkets and miniatures she collected and now that she was gone they were his! He played for hours, even broke a few.

All was quiet in the house when a set of footprints dragged into the powder, no feet attached, mind you...

The door creaked open, and Wufei turned around, nearly giving himself whiplash. In the doorway stood a cold reflection of his grandmother.

The poor boy felt the air around him cool until steam wafted from his mouth, the eyes staring him down felt completely wrong and something in his gut told him, his mind was about to shut down.

Two heartbeats later, she lunged at him with long nails and her mouth open impossible wide.

He didn't remember jumping out the window and running around the house screaming, nor did he remember his mother and father scared out of their minds, taking him to the doctor.

The old Doc said he was alright, just shocked by his grandmother's death, and sent him home to rest.

He did remember his father, two days later, telling him over and over again it was a nightmare and Jiangshi, ghost, Quilin and Tengu did not exist.

Mama said his grandma probably didn't mean him any harm, she was just upset to find him in her room and gave him a scare to teach him a lesson,

"Ghost are like that" she said.

His father said those were women's tales and he was a boy.

"Boys do not heed such stories!"

He believe him and grew up to philosophize on the power of folk tales over children.

Now in the hindsight of things...

He was sorry he didn't listen to his mother.

Treize was baffled. There he was, the boy he dreamt of so long ago! He was dress differently but the ponytail and the almond-shaped eyes were unmistakable.

He ran his hand across the soft skin, marveling at the warmth and texture. Like one of his roses... just better? Yes much better, beautiful!

He was lucky the lake broke his fall, it was not that high a ledge anyway .

Treize jumped in right after him, followed by some of his uncle Luddo's 'dogs.' The mutts didn't help much, they swam around him while he pulled his catch out of the cold lake.

Now his 'catch' was bundled up in bed with him, the wood crackling in the fireplace was the only sound besides his soft snores.

Treize watched him sleep, while exploring the light body with bold hands. He spooned the boy onto his chest and twisted just so he could glimpse the long eyelashes and pouting lips.

"...hmmmmm" he felt like purring! He wanted to keep that sweet scent in his memory for ever! So he nuzzled the baby soft hairs at the base of the dragon's neck. His fingers found a patch of hair under the blanket and that made him laugh in delight.

He dear not go further, so his naughty hand climbed slowly back to the taught ridges of the stomach. There was still much to learn, he told himself while he rubbed his hip onto the pert bottom. The boy groaned softly and Treize was loath to open one eye to check if he was awake.

'Nop, still sleeping'.

With a vulpine grin on his face he squeezed his arms gently around the boy.

Why did he run?

Silly thing looked afraid and nothing got Treize more interested than a game of tag.

He had a foggy memory of the angry boy from a duel long ago, trying to kill him?

He laughed, he held no grudge; maybe the little dragon didn't know this and was afraid he might not be forgiven this time around.

So they played tag and...

It was fun until ...well, the 'dogs' got into the game, so did a possum, a badger and probably every other forest critter in that boy's path.

He laughed out at first, they never saw anybody stir such havoc in this quiet forest.

Then the dogs got a bit too much into the game, and he was hard pressed to keep them from taking a bite out of his dragon. He eve tossed a couple out of the deer's path to keep them away from his the boy.

His uncle called them dogs but everybody new they were home-raised wolves. A fat wolf is still a wolf.

"they make good watch dogs, so they are dogs!" the old man said.

"Don't worry, my pretty. They wont bite you now"

The culprits lay sprawled around the bed, looking up alerted by his voice, they gave him remorseful looks. They obeyed his every signal, for reasons only they new. Uncle Luddo claimed he had fairy's touch. Treize didn't dwell much on it, he didn't dwell much on anything lately.

He shook his head lightly and smiled at the arrange of paws and furry bellies around them. His hand stroked lazily over a strong thigh. So much strength packed in such a little body.

"Stay? please?"

Treize whispered into the ebony mane, he kissed the supple features wishing with all his hearth that when morning came his dragon would be here still.

Just in case he squeezed him a little closer and glanced at the wolves in mute communication, the big silver glanced back in understanding.

Tbc.

Like? 

****

Jiangshi or hopping corpses:

Are corpses whose touch can kill a living person instantly. Also the Cantonese name for vampires.

__

(xi xie gui or "blood-sucking ghost" in Mandarin)

** Tengu** (Bird Goblins).  
Playfully malicious Oriental spirits thought to plague Buddhist monks with thefts and pranks. They often took the form of crows or kites. "The Tengu road" refers to the path taken by hypocritical priests. They steal children and molest woodcutters in rural regions, but entertain some guests lavishly in their great, gold-roofed palaces. They could take on human forms, but with unusually long, beak-like noses. **Chimera  
**In Greek mythology, the Chimera is a monster, depicted as an animal with the head of a lion, the body of a she-goat, and the tail of a dragon Since Kirin or Quilin was the only name I found for the chinese Chimera... well, it stays. 


	8. chapter 8

Pepper & China Roses

By Rude.

Warnings:

AU, Possible OOC, yaoi, other stuff, maybe some angst.

Chapter 8 

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Morning arrived soon enough, birds fluttering close to the windowsill, heralding the sun. Cold mountain breeze, rushing past the rooftop, made the bells hanging off an oak three, chime.

Light fell from the overhead windows onto a very large rustic bed. Amongst a cloud of soft fabric and fur lay one Chinese boy, curled into the chest of his former nemesis.

He opened his eyes so very slowly, the awareness of his nude body pressing against someone's warm skin was just a bit too much to process.

'Couldn't be... I dreamt he was chasing me... and now...'

Wufei looked down at the foot of the bed to see their toes and part of a long leg, showing from under the rumpled covers.

'Look's like he caught me?'

He made a face if anyone had seen, he could have been teased for life.

Sleep had left him in a hurry now, although he still had trouble thinking clearly.

The warmth was soothing, the soft scent of roses and something earthly and clean where making him doubt his sanity. The usual Wufei would have been up and screaming murder the second before his eyes saw dawn, this Wufei was not quite sure of anything now.

His eyes tracked random features of a well toned body; they fixed onto the copper colored locks glowing in the sun, right above his nose; and around the perfect caracole of an ear, further up; he saw a chiseled chin and soft lips... It felt hot and cold inside his belly and he noticed, distantly, there was no air in his lungs. He just gawked at what he could see of the person in bed with him, wondering if he dear move to get a better glimpse of the mans' face ...

Oh! There was no doubt it was a man holding him, if what he felt pressing on his thigh was what he thought it was... _He just wanted to scurry away and die of embarrassment_. Two wars and some of the most intensive training in history, and he got himself in this mess. Because one stupid dishonor done to an old witch so many years ago...

He very carefully, drew his hips and legs away from the hardening manhood. The strong arms didn't loosen one bit and there was no sign of the man waking any time soon.

Deep flush on his face and limbs quaking, he tried to move an inch at a time, craning his neck away still hoping to confirm the identity of his bedmate ... deep down he new there was nothing to confirm. The man who so unabashedly wrapped arms around Wufei could be no other than Treize Kushrenada.

He kept worming himself out of the embrace until his knees where planted firmly on the mattress and his bum sticking up in the air. A very undignified position... but those arms still held firmly around his shoulders and all he could do was pull himself out slowly, it would be worse to wake his enemy while still in them man's grip.

He was almost free! One last pull..

Now his face was so close to the graceful neck, he could smell the supple skin ... Wufei inhaled deeply and blushed prettily at his own dear... but the smell was _good_... he blushed worse.

He was so close he could even glimpse the pulse in his veins....Pulse?

The boy jerked away suddenly, loose glossy black hair falling about his face.

All pretense of stealth forgotten, he sat cross legged on the fur-lined duvet.

Yes, the smiling sleepy face looking up to him belonged to the man he killed a couple years aback.

Yes, on the floor lay a sea of silver-gray canines sleeping in various poses of abandon around the bed. _Memories of shinning demon eyes and fangs chasing him in the woods, flashed back to him in a clear pattern now_.

Yes, he sat naked on said bed, being ogled by...

Something clicked in his head and all the night's ordeal coalesced in one familiar, well used, spot of Wufei's brain: Let's just call it '_The angry spot'_.

"You Brazen, Son of a BITCH!"

All the former general had for a warning was the insult, turned battle cry. Next thing he knew he was on the floor... well only his torso and his head, the rest of him was still tangled in the sheets on the bed.

It hurt like hell, his poor head.

Up in the hills a poor shepherd ran, sheep and all, from his perseverant suitor. The man held a dignified jug for a few minutes, stumbled down and got back on his feet right away. He was old as time itself ...and just a bit younger than his crazy suitor.

Uncle Luddo ran up the green hill just as his reluctant love ran down the other side, the bawling of the sheep serving as easy herald of his love's not so nimble anymore, steps. This scene unfolded every third day of the week and sometimes on the noon of Friday and the dawn of Saturday. Never on Sunday, since all good shepherds and noblemen alike went to church. _Where they would behave... except for one or two annoying winks and pases from Luddo and horrified glances from the sheep herder_.

All the old folks living in the nearby village knew this routine to be fact of life. Its being going on for ages, since they where too young to remember.

It all came down to this:

Luddo dressed a Viking hat when he was horny and in such a dire state he chased the 'Love of his life' up and down the hills, calling out for his _Brunilde_, his _Ganymede_, his '_gray eyed mare'_ and every other name he could come up with in the heat of the moment.

It was always the same...

No one knew if he had ever caught the poor man or if his intentions where honorable... _not likely, if any of Crazy Luddo's raunchy plights held truth._

It was not even clear if his favors where returned... They joked in the pub about the two being so old that, even if Luddo ever managed to catch his eternal friend, they would never survive foreplay. Today was not such day, it seemed. It was lunch time and Uncle Luddo was heading back to his castle... only now remembering he was supposed to be entertaining guests.

On his way across the meadow he heard screaming and some of the most delightful cuss words ever to singe the air.

"....DIU LEI! YOU BASTARD! ...YOU VILLIAN! You MOTHERLESS MANGY DOG! HUAI DAN....You ... YOU BUNION ON HUMANITY'S ASS!"

Luddo laughed at this last bout of steam. Clearly this was a show worth watching!

He followed the growing commotion and soon was standing at the guest house's lintel post. Right then, out the door came flying various objects: one chair, a little bench, a half a dozen books, a jar full of something that splashed on the cobbled floor and a big metal pan that twanged so hard even the 'dogs' came running out of the house.

In lieu of this, the old man made a strategic retreat to a safe distance. What horrible hydra made nest in his guest house?

Une had left for the nearest town the same day they arrived to the castle.

It seemed his Excellency's remains would be brought in by cargo today, and they still couldn't find the castle's keeper or even the maid that was supposed to greet them. They roamed around the grounds in search for any sign of life, but found only bird feeders and laundry drying in the sun. These people didn't know of dryers?

A few wind chimes hung from open windows atop the tall stone walls, colorful curtains fluttered out with not a care in the world. Apparently they knew nothing of security measures either....

Wufei was nonplused by the delay since he was warned by Dame Fiftenthe about the odd hours the people in these sleepy mountains kept.

..._the castle is, let's just say, a bit laid back and out of the public eye_. She had told Wufei with her saucy smile. Une was curiuos about her and planned to meet the woman later.

They ended their search and agreed to meet at the hotel after Une went to the nearest cargo terminal to check for news. It would take a day or so since, it seems, the town had no landing port. The Dame was not kidding when she said it was out of the public eye.

Today she marched into the hotel, if the old alpine lodge could be called a hotel in search of her escort. Chang was not in his room when she called, the desk girl hadn't seen him since yesterday. They barely had a phone working! Let alone basic commodities like vid phones or in-room climate control. Une could have sworn she heard the chugging of a boiler in the basement...

'Impossible...'

It was pretty... in a rustic sort a way... Carvings of flowers and gaudy garlands all over the wood work, checkered curtains and flower pots on all the windows.

She snorted '_... next thing you know there will be fairies and maidens on horses jumping around the place'_. As in answer she found herself staring at an old reproduction of a long haired woman on a horse jumping over a fence. It read: _Kaiserin Sissi_. This place was ridiculous!

'Where is that boy! I told him to be here at 11 hundred'

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Diu lei: which supposedly means f you in Cantonese.

****

Huai dan: villain, wastrel, possible criminal. _Literally: bad egg_

I dug it up from some obscure sources, so please correct me if I am wrong. Phonetic variations are marked by numbers but I removed them, _monkey girl I am_, because they will look awkward in the fic.

Here are some Excerpts of a very peculiar dictionary, for those who are interested:

****

cao4 (verb) ‡ have intercourse with note Equivalent of the English word Fuck:'Cao4 Ni3 Ma!' (Fuck your mother). It can also take an organ as the object:'Cao4 Ni2 Ma Bi1!' (See Bi1.) This word only describes the action of a male. Its subject is usually I' and omitted. This is still the most offensive word in Chinese. It is, however, less offensive if used without an object.

chou1 ni3 ma1 de bi1 ‡ Suck your mother's cunt note Common in Taiwan, of unknown frequency in China. Not recommended if unarmed.

****

gan4 fuck note indicating a sexual intercourse

****

gun3 dan4 ‡ to leave here quickly (saying by someone who is tired of another) note verb

****

huai4 dan4 noun † villain, wastrel, possible criminal. note literally: bad egg.

****

hun2 dan4 noun † bastard, child of uncertain ancestry note literally: mixed egg

****

nu nu (3) Tits, note Pronounced "New New" A very cute way of saying breasts.

****

wan2ba1 dan4 ‡ "turtle-egg" something like a cuckhold. BAD.


	9. Chapter 9

**DOUBLE OR NOTHING**

To his superior officer, Zechs looked like a doomed man. The casket laid in pieces around them and the blackened remains of an OZ soldier crowned the table, a renegade prince looming over this little horror show of his own design.

Sally Po cleared her throat, it was a lost attempt at civility but she had to say something.

"Feeling better now?"

The blond groaned. He covered his face as he let the crowbar slide to the ground; it was followed closely by his knees.

The test kit in Sally's hand confirmed any doubts they had left. She closed the laptop and narrowed her eyes at the table, the frosted corpse stared up high into the ceiling, grinning impossible wide. It was probably an after effect because of the trauma and the environment change …specially on most of the skin around the mouth.

To the man now sobbing on the ground, this mocking smile had been his undoing. The doctor herself had flinched at the rictus; it was remarkably similar to the former leader's half smile. Everyone new that smirk from press conferences and the pep talks he directed to his troops, for Zechs it was maddening that destiny had seen he kept it to his grave.

As a military physician she understood what she saw as a product of the natural happenings, biological, chemical and physical. One got used to classifying the usual signs of dying in mobile suits… this one was obviously maimed by a thermal weapon from the knees down, matching the death of the former OZ general's.

Merquise probably knew post mortem just as well as any doctor; he was dealing with the dead since childhood after all. From the moment the lid popped off they both could read clearly into the history of this man's death.

The burns evidenced that there was a short, but painful, span of seconds before the deep freeze of space vacuumed all that was in the MS.

"Sometimes…" He whispered "Sometimes the shield around the cockpit doesn't give way after the hit, you don't blow up in pieces immediately and you are trap in eight seconds of exquisite pain like an instant oven. Your skin gets burn off and then space freezes away your last breath. "

Oh, the general probably deserved the infamous eight-seconds-death in some people's opinion, but Sally was not too keen about it, especially after this little outburst.  
She wondered if the man was conscious when it happened?  
She doubted it but was now sure Zechs believed the worse had happened to his former nemesis.

Hollowed eye sockets; the absence of hair and scalp, all burned of by fire leaving a shinny skull; hands curled up into the gloved flight suit, legs slightly askew.

A lot of the bones where bare and broken, visible trough the melted parts of the cloth, some arranged neatly into place, probably out of respect, by who ever packed the body.

She lifted a piece of metal and placed it into the container and continued to place the parts of the casket back into place.

From the corner of her eye she saw the large blond squeeze his ankles with shaking hands, then slowly standing, he picked up the piece of broken polymer closest to him and hand it to her. She said nothing… they just kept on going until the body was covered in a half assed box, juxtaposed to fit back into the freezer. Just in time too, had the thing started to melt and stink, she would have faired for his sanity.

"Une you where so right, there was obviously more than camaraderie between the Lightning Count and the general." Sally mused while she drove off.

At her side, the former pilot stared of into the highway, misery scrawled in his face and a barely noticeable hiccupping in his every breath.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Slamming the door behind him, Wufei marched out of the cabin wrapped in his wrath and nothing else. He was met by the merry eyes and gray forked eyebrows, of Santa Claus's evil twin.

So it was that, yet again, whit another shriek of horror he turned tail and ran straight into the door he closed himself; passed out from the mighty slam (and a fair share of panic he got doused with so early in the day…) got carried trough the threshold like a bride by "yet again" another Duke of Kushrenada.  
Now he lay in bed beside the first Kushrenada he was running from in the first place.

"I heard rumors, Red…"

The old man sipped more of his coffee while his grand-nephew sipped tea …and cradled the little warrior to his chest.

"They came telling everyone you died up there…"

He pointed to the ceiling without lifting his eyes from the cup. Treize nodded as if answering a question and he, also, kept his eyes to his cup.

The wind chimes sounded softly in the summer breeze.

"Bab told us this was to be a lie." He said, nodding to himself and sniffing at the placid steam rising from the beverage.

Treize just placed his cup on the night table and went back to staring at Wufei; the boy would be asleep for a short while more. He feared a concussion but his uncle assured him the boy fainted more from shock than from butting the door with his hard skull. He was the one with two nasty bumps on his head from their earlier scuffle.

He was so groggy when Luddo marched in with Wufei in arms, and propped them up both in the large bed amidst a cloud of pillows. He picked up the broken china, kitchenware and busted up duvets pouring feathers. The later he placed in his lap with a basket of tread and needles to mend while they talked, or more likely Luddo talked and Treize sulked.

"He looks pale, have you fed him?" From the startled rise of his eyebrows the old man could guess the answer. "No wonder he keeps fainting. How long have he been here"

"A day" Treize curled a stray lock around his finger.

"This is not like you Red… humph… That boy need's some cloths and a warm meal. Is the phone working? "

Treize shrugged his shoulders slowly. Didn't know, didn't care.

The old man tsk'd while he abandoned his knitting in a basket by the door. Treize listened to him instructing someone on the phone, his eyes watered suddenly. He ran to the bathroom to dry the tears before someone saw, he didn't even remember the house had a phone. He should have checked Wufei for weapons, at the least feed him something! Who knows how long he had been wondering these woods! His lips were dry, he was probably thirsty. He filled a cup of water but stopped short of waking him, it wouldn't do to aggravate him anymore; better to let him sleep, he looked peaceful after all and was in no risk of dehydrating.

Treize sat by the bedside and gentle as breeze, his fingers dipped in the water and moistened the thin lips of the Chinese Preventer. All he saw was the younger man he was so fun of, the fierce dragon.

When Luddo came back he found his nephew curled up in the chair he vacated not five minutes ago. He tucked a blanket around him and combed the long reddish bangs from his forehead. The young man was asleep but he showed no signs of enjoying restful slumber.

"My poor Red, Where have you been? Did you finally have enough of that war of yours? "

The sleeper answered nothing. Meanwhile, Wufei hurriedly closed his eyes. The old man was turning and heading back to the hallway when he cleared his throat and scratched his beard. "My nieces will be by soon with some clean cloths for you, we will speak once you are rested."

Tbc.

Phew!

When my new laptop arrives I will update sooo much quicker. Thank you for your patience.


End file.
